You are wondering on how to celebrate Christmas the French way? You will find in this article informations on how french people do their greetings, what they eat and how they prepare Christmas celebrations.
Christmas greetings in French
To wish someone a merry Christmas, French people usually say: Joyeux Noël! (joyeux meaning merry or joyful) This is the most used expression. But you could also hear Joyeuses fêtes! which sounds a bit more formal.
People start using these expressions around December 20th and sometimes a bit earlier in shops, when you buy Christmas presents. And in action, to greet someone for Christmas the French way you should say : "passez de joyeuses fêtes !" because we use it with the verb passer, meaning to spend.
Christmas decorations and lightings
French people usually start to prepare for Christmas end of November, searching for the perfect gift in shops, which are already decorated with guirlandes (Christmas wreath), boules (balls), and neige (snow)... often in green, white, red and golden.
The streets in both large cities and small villages are shining at night with beautiful illuminations. You can also visit beautiful marchés de Noël.
French people decorate the three around the 15th of December or even earlier. They also prepare la crêche (nativity set) in large numbers.
How to taste Christmas the French way?
Whereas, a few decades ago, Christmas eve was dedicated to the midnight Mass and was preceded by a very light meal, nowadays it has become one of the biggest and most festive meal of the year!
Usually, the evening will start with a coupe de Champagne and some fine mise-en-bouches.
Then, once around the table, you will start with an entrée: oysters, smoked salmon, or the not-anymore-politically-correct foie gras (goose liver paté). You will then enjoy a roasted dinde (turkey) or chapon, or if the family is inclined to break this tradition, you could eat nice dishes with fish or Saint-Jacques, or wild meat.
Then (hold on because you're not done yet) will come the plateau de fromages (of course) with some green leaves.
After that, you deserve a well-earned break with a trou normand (a sorbet ball with some strong alcohol in a glass) supposed to help you digest and prepare for the desserts... Yes, there is a "s" in this case: if you're celebrating Christmas in Provence, you will have to share 13 desserts PLUS the bûche de Noël.
Vocabulaire utile
Une guirlande de Noël = a Christmas wreath / garland
Une boule de Noël = a Christmas ball
Les illuminations = Christmas lightings
Un amuse-bouche = mini-size delicacies enjoyed before a meal.
Une entrée = a starter
Un plat = a main course
Un dessert = a dessert
La bûche de noël = Christmas traditional cake in the shape of a logg.